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Saturday, 22 February 2014

EU seeks peace as Ukraine death toll hits 75

European Union seeks to broker a political settlement in Ukraine even as the death tool reaches 75 in the violence between police and anti-government protesters

AFP

Kiev: European Union ministers sought to broker a political settlement in Ukraine after gun battles between police and anti-government protesters brought the death toll to 75 in two days of the worst violence in the country since Soviet times.

Three hours of fierce fighting in Kiev's Independence Square, which was recaptured by the protesters, left the bodies of over 20 civilians strewn on the ground, a short distance from where President Viktor Yanukovich was meeting the EU delegation.

The ministers, from Germany, France and Poland, embarked on "a night of difficult negotiations" with Yanukovich and the opposition, said EU officials, who hoped a plan for an interim government and early elections could bring peace.

Bloody clashes in Kiev: In pictures

"Talks of Polish, German, French foreign ministers at Yanukovich's office still going on. The opposition leaders, the parliament's speaker, many MPs attend," spokesman Marcin Wojciechowski, who is in Kiev with Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, wrote in a Twitter post.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden told Yanukovich in a phone call on Thursday the United States was prepared to sanction officials responsible for violence against civilian protesters. It was the call between the two men since violent protests erupted in Kiev.

"He called upon President Yanukovich to immediately pull back all security forces - police, snipers, military and paramilitary units, and irregular forces," the White House said in a statement, adding that Biden made clear "theUnited States is prepared to sanction those officials responsible for the violence."

The Obama administration is considering a range of sanctions, the White House said on Thursday, although it did not give details on what options were being considered or the timeline for decisions.

U.S lawmakers are planning legislation to reinforce any administration action, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez said in a statement late on Thursday.

France's foreign minister said there was still no agreement over a proposed road map to ease the crisis, which erupted in November after Yanukovich abandoned a proposed trade deal with the European Union and turned instead towards Moscow.

"There is no agreement for now, the negotiations are very difficult and we are working to reach a peaceful solution," France's Laurent Fabius told reporters.

The three ministers, who extended their stay in Kiev until Friday, have been negotiating with the government and opposition since Thursday morning.

"We have to find every way to see how we can put a new government in place, think about elections and see how we can end the violence, but at this moment there is no solution," Fabius said.

Earlier in the day, riot police were captured on video shooting from a rooftop at demonstrators in the central plaza, known as the Maidan. Protesters hurled petrol bombs and paving stones to drive the security forces off a corner of the square the police had captured in battles that began two days earlier.

The Health Ministry said 75 people had been killed since Tuesday afternoon, which meant at least 47 died in Thursday's clashes. That was by far the worst violence since Ukraine emerged from the crumbling Soviet Union22 years ago.

The trio of visiting foreign ministers met Yanukovich and the opposition after EU colleagues in Brussels imposed targeted sanctions on Ukraine and threatened more if the authorities failed to restore calm.

Vitaly Klitschko, an opposition leader, said he hoped for a deal overnight, but added there was no clear result so far.

In further diplomatic efforts, U.S. President Barack Obama spoke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who in turn discussed Ukraine with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin "stressed the critical importance of an immediate end to bloodshed, the need to take urgent measures to stabilise the situation and suppress extremist and terrorist attacks" the Kremlin said - sharing Yanukovich's view that he faces a coup.

The White House said Obama and Merkel agreed it was "critical" U.S. and EU leaders "stay in close touch in the days ahead on steps we can take to support an end to the violence and a political solution that is in the best interests of the Ukrainian people". Earlier this month, bugged and leaked diplomatic phone calls exposed EU-U.S. disagreement on Ukraine.

The EU plan "offers a chance to bring an end to violence," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in Warsaw, adding Yanukovich was willing to hold rapid elections to parliament and the presidency - the latter something Yanukovich has so far appeared reluctant to consider, a year before his term ends.

Tusk also spoke by phone with Biden about the crisis.

In Kiev, demonstrators on Independence Square held a vigil after dark for fallen comrades, lit by mobile phone screens held aloft.

Medics carried bodies on stretchers through lines of protesters who chanted, "Heroes, heroes" to the dead.

Although armed militants on the barricades tend to be from the far-right fringe, the opposition has broad support. But many Ukrainians also fear violence slipping out of control.

"This is brother fighting brother," said Iryna, a local woman walking to Independence Square to donate syringes for blood transfusions. "We need to realise we're all one people."

Kiev residents emptied bank machines of cash and stockpiled groceries, with many staying off the streets.

In a sign of faltering support for Yanukovich, his hand-picked head of Kiev's city administration quit the ruling party in protest at bloodshed.

In an indication that Yanukovich is losing support in parliament, the assembly late on Thursday adopted a resolution urging authorities to stop shooting, withdraw police from the centre of Kiev and end the action against the protesters.

But core loyalists were still talking tough.

Interior Minister Vitaly Zakharchenko, wearing camouflage as he made a televised statement, said police had been issued combat weapons and would use them "in accordance with the law" to defend themselves - or to free 67 of their colleagues his ministry said were being held captive.

Demonstrators said captured police had been allowed to go.

Musharraf not to be tried in military court

The court said Musharraf could not be tried in a military court since he was a retired army general

Reuters

Islamabad: A special court in Pakistan constituted to try former president Pervez Mushharaf ruled Friday that his treason trial will not take place in a military court, and summoned him before it March 11.

The 70-year-old is facing charges of high treason, which can carry the death sentence, for imposing the Emergency and subverting the constitution in 2007.

During the hearing, the three-judge panel announced its decision, which was reserved earlier over rejecting Musharraf's plea that challenged the jurisdiction of the special court and sought to hold the trial at a military court, reported Dawn online.

To avoid possible arrest, the former army chief appeared for the first time Feb 18 in the court, which deferred his indictment.

The former army chief had filed three applications challenging the appointment of the head of the prosecution team, establishment and the jurisdiction of the special court.

Musharraf has been in a military hospital since Jan 2 after he complained of a heart problem when he was being driven to the court in Islamabad.

The former president had got bail in three cases, including the 2007 assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto. She was killed in Rawalpindi during Musharraf's rule.

Why is the US spending so much on the F-35 fighter?

The US Air Force and the Marine Corps have not invested in an alternative, having put all their eggs in the F-35 basket and the project has become ‘too big to fail’

Washington: Despite incessant technical problems and delays, the US military has no plans to cancel the new F-35 fighter jet, the costliest weapons program in Pentagon history.

The Joint Strike Fighter has been touted as a technological wonder that will dominate the skies but it has suffered one setback after another, putting the project seven years behind schedule and $167 billion over budget.

As the Pentagon prepares to unveil its proposed budget for 2015, the program's survival is not in doubt but it remains unclear how many planes will be built in the end and how many foreign partners will be willing to buy it.

After more than a decade since it was launched, officials insist there is no going back on the program, as the plane is supposed to form the backbone of the future fighter jet fleet.

The US Air Force and the Marine Corps have not invested in an alternative, having put all their eggs in the F-35 basket. The Navy, in theory, could bail out if it wanted and opt to buy more F-18 jets, but it is under intense pressure to keep in line.

The project has become "too big to fail," said Gordon Adams, a professor at American University and former White House official.

The F-35 enjoys broad backing in Congress, as contractor Lockheed Martin has spread the work for the plane across 45 US states.

Foreign allies also have committed to the program, and Washington has promised to deliver a game-changing plane.

As a one-size-fits-all plane, and with US allies invited to take part, the program originally was touted as a money-saving idea.

But the program's costs have snowballed, for an estimated 68 percent increase over its initial price tag. The Pentagon now plans to spend $391.2 billion on 2,443 aircraft, with each plane costing a staggering $160 million.

When taking into account the cost of flying and maintaining the F-35 over the course of its life, the program could surpass a trillion dollars, according to the Government Accountability Office.

The aircraft is billed as the ultimate stealth attack plane, with a design enabling it to evade radar detection.

When the F-35 confronts an adversary in the air, the enemy plane "will die before it even knows it's even in a fight," Air Force chief General Mark Welsh told CBS television's "60 Minutes" show.

Equipped to fly at supersonic speeds and outfitted with elaborate software, the F-35 resembles a flying computer. Through the visor of a hi-tech helmet linked up with cameras on the plane, the pilot can see through the floor of the cockpit to the ground below -- providing the pilot an unprecedented 360-degree picture.

The aircraft will not enter into service before 2016, ten years after its first flight.

The main cause of the delay was a decision to start building the plane before testing was finished. As a result, bugs and other technical glitches keep forcing repairs and redesign work, slowing down production.

The 24 million lines of code for the plane's software have posed a persistent headache, and the jet has yet to attain the level of performance and reliability expected.

On Friday, the program office acknowledged to AFP that the F-35B, the short-takeoff variant for the Marine Corps, suffered cracks in its bulkheads during stress tests. As a result, the durability tests have been suspended and the plane may have to be modified.

Like other weapons programs in the past, the technical problems are driving up the cost of each plane, and that is forcing Washington to scale back the number of aircraft it will buy.

The Pentagon already has announced plans to purchase only 34 of the jets in fiscal year 2015, instead of the 42 originally planned.

Apart from the United States, eight countries are taking part in the program: Australia, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Turkey.

Israel has expressed an interest in the plane, as has Japan, South Korea and Singapore.

Some governments have ordered their first aircraft but with the cost of each plane rising, purchase plans remain tentative.

Italian marines’ case: Nato warns India, calls for ‘appropriate resolution

Nato warns Indian against using anti-terrorism law to try the Italian marines accused of killing Indian fishermen; says would have negative implications in the fight against piracy

Reuters

Brussels: Nato warned India on Wednesday that using anti-terrorism legislation to try two Italian marines accused of killing two Indian fishermen would undermine international efforts to combat piracy.

India has announced its Supreme Court will hold a hearing next week on whether to charge marines Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone under its maritime security law, provoking criticism from the European Union and Italian authorities.

The two men have been living in the Italian embassy in New Delhi.

Nato ( North Atlantic Treaty Organization) chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Wednesday called for an "appropriate resolution".

"I am personally very concerned about the situation of the two Italian sailors. I am also concerned by the suggestion that they could be tried for terrorism offences," he told a news conference in Brussels.

"This could have possible negative implications for the international fight against piracy. A fight which is in all of our interest."

Nato leads a counter-piracy mission in the Indian ocean.

The two marines, part of a military security team protecting the tanker Enrica Lexie from pirates, are accused of shooting the two fishermen after mistaking them for pirates off Kerala in February 2012.

India's attorney general said on Friday the two would be tried for the deaths of the fishermen under the anti-piracy and anti-terrorism law but that the death penalty available under that legislation would not be imposed.

The Supreme Court is due to hold a hearing on February 18 to decide whether to validate or reject the attorney general's request.

US hails India's role in fight against piracy

United States congratulates India for key role in Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia

Reuters

Washington: US and European Union (EU) officials have hailed India for a key role in the global fight against piracy that has resulted in a remarkable drop in such activities off the coast of Somalia.

Donna Hopkins, counter piracy and maritime security coordinator at the State Department, told foreign media on Friday that "India is a very important member" of the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia. The organization was established in January 2009.

Since then, the Contact Group has grown to an open and vital architecture of 80 nations and organizations, including the entire spectrum of stakeholders, she said in a briefing on counter piracy with François Rivasseau, deputy head of the European Union delegation to the US.

The US has just handed over the chairmanship of the contact group to the European Union.

"There is almost no littoral country, no naval country, and no major shipping country that has not contributed actively to the Contact Group," Hopkins said, describing Russia and China as "two very important actors".

"The figures speak for themselves," she said noting, "There has been no piracy hijacking off the coast of Somalia since May 10 2012, over 20 months."

"This is the lowest rate of attempted hijackings in over six years and certainly since the peak of the crisis in 2011," Hopkins said.

"No ships are currently held hostage by Somali pirates, although there remain at least 49 hostages whom the international community is working to free."

Over 1,400 pirates and suspected pirates are in courts or in prisons in 21 countries with the largest number held in India.

"However, there is still much work to be done," Hopkins said, "The fundamental conditions along the Somali coast have not changed, and if we drop our guard, piracy will return."

There are three organized multilateral counter-piracy missions: the EU's NAVFOR Atalanta, NATO's Operation Ocean Shield, and Combined Maritime Forces Combined Task Force 151.

Then there are a number of independent deployers, including China, Russia, India, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, and South Korea, she said.

The operational commanders of all of these counter-piracy forces meet quarterly in Bahrain on a voluntary and nonpolitical basis to discuss their respective plans and de-conflict their operations.

"This is a remarkable success. It works very well," Hopkins said, "So piracy is a great uniter because it's a common enemy. Everybody hates pirates."

Hopkins said there are 22 to 30 military ships of different nationalities at any given time from "The whole world -- And China and Russia and India."

In a first, US bans bidi products from Indian company

The US Food and Drug Administration says products manufactured by Jash International were found to be not substantially equivalent to tobacco products commercially marketed

Washington: US regulators for the first time have banned the sale and import of "bidi" products made by an Indian company as they did not meet regulatory standards.

The US Food and Drug Administration in a statement said the products manufactured by Pune-based Jash International – Sutra Bidis Red, Sutra Bidis Menthol, Sutra Bidis Red Cone and Sutra Bidis Menthol Cone – were found to be not substantially equivalent to tobacco products commercially marketed.

The ban is first one issued by the FDA under the 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act.

This means they can no longer be sold or distributed in interstate commerce or imported into the United States, the FDA said.

"Historically, tobacco companies controlled which products came on and off the market without any oversight. But the Tobacco Control Act gave the FDA, a science-based regulatory agency, the authority to review applications and determine which new tobacco products may be sold and distributed under the law in order to protect public health," said Mitch Zeller, director of the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products.

The regulator said under the Under the Tobacco Control Act, Jash International did not identify eligible predicate tobacco products as required for the FDA to perform an substantially equivalent (SE) review.

Also, the company did not provide information necessary to determine whether the new products had the same characteristics as that of its previous products, or had different characteristics but did not raise different questions of public health, the basis used by the FDA to review SE applications, it said.

"Companies have an obligation to comply with the law – in this case, by providing evidence to support an SE application," said Zeller.

"Because the company failed to meet the requirement of the Tobacco Control Act, the FDA's decision means that, regardless of when the products were manufactured, these four products can no longer be legally imported or sold or distributed through interstate commerce in the United States," the official said.

Existing inventory may be subject to enforcement action, including seizure, without further notice. Companies that continue to sell and distribute these products in the United States may be subject to enforcement actions by the FDA, the statement said.

Bidis are thin, hand rolled cigarettes that are made mostly in India and other Southeast Asian countries. The tobacco is wrapped in a tendu or temburni leaf, and tied with a colorful string.

China summons US diplomat over Obama-Dalai meet

REX Features

Beijing: China summoned US Charge d'Affaires here and lodged a strong diplomatic protest over the meeting between President Barack Obama and the Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama.

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui summoned Daniel Kritenbrink, Charge d'Affaires of US Embassy in China, to lodge solemn representations for Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama disregarding China's strong opposition, the Foreign Ministry here said in a statement.

Zhang said such a wrong move gravely interfered in China's internal affairs, seriously violated the US commitment of not supporting the "Tibet independence", gravely violated basic norms governing the international relations and seriously undermined the China-US relations.

"China expresses strong indignation and firm opposition," Zhang said. The meeting is a serious violation of the basic norms of international relations and caused serious damage to the US-China relations, the Foreign Ministry statement was quoted by the state-run Xinhua news agency as saying.

Obama offered "strong support" for Tibetans' human rights as he met the Dalai Lama.

Obama, during the meeting, extended support to the Dalai Lama's "Middle Way" approach of neither assimilation nor independence for Tibetans in China.

The White House' announcement of Obama's third meeting with the spiritual leader, drew a sharp reaction from China, which has long opposed foreign dignitaries meeting the Dalai Lama who fled to India in 1959.

Earlier, China lodged diplomatic protest soon after the White House announced the meeting and later the Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying sought its cancellation saying that it would seriously impair bilateral ties.

Hua told a media briefing that "we are deeply concerned and have lodged solemn representations with the US side."

"We must point out that Tibet-related affairs fall entirely within the internal affairs of China which allow no foreign interference. The Dalai Lama is a political exile who has long been engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the cloak of religion", she said.

"By arranging a meeting between the President and the Dalai Lama, the US side will grossly interfere in the internal affairs of China, seriously violate norms governing international relations and severely impair China-US relations," Hua had said ahead of the meeting.

Obama and the Dalai Lama - both Nobel Peace Prize laureates - have met twice before in 2010 and 2011, drawing similar protests from China.